Israel

Middle Eastern Realities

Obama’s 3 AM Moment

Obama’s 3 AM Moment

One of the issues raised in the run-up to our last
presidential election was the question “Which candidate is best qualified to
handle a ‘3 AM moment’?” America now has a partial answer. It isn’t President
Obama.

Last Friday was Day 4 of the ongoing protests in Egypt, where tens of
thousands Egyptians took to the streets to demand the ouster of President Hosni
Mubarak. As the situation reached a flash point, with a mounting death toll and Egyptian
tanks in the streets of Cairo, President Obama maintained his silence. Well, not
quite. He did Twitter, by proxy.

Around noon Friday, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs issued a 22 word statement on Twitter:
“Very concerned about violence in Egypt – government must respect the rights of
the Egyptian people & turn on social networking and internet.” The White
House also informed the media that Obama had received a 40 minute briefing on
the situation. Phew!

After the U.S. markets tanked Friday, a full 4 days after the beginning of
the Egyptian crisis, Obama finally addressed the nation. As usual, our president
first absolved himself of any blame, stating that if only Egypt has instituted
the reforms Obama had been suggesting for the last 2 years, the crisis could
have been averted. He then went on to make a bold statement about human rights,
“…and the US will stand up for them – everywhere.” Period.

By Saturday, the uprising in Egypt had spread to other countries, with waves of Arab protests in
Tunisia, Jordan and Yemen. Saturday night, Obama partied. “The Washington
A-List was out in force Saturday night at the farewell party
for senior adviser David Axelrod, with a roster of guests featuring Cabinet
secretaries, big shot journos and Obama.”

On Sunday, with the protests turning into a conflagration, the only word
from the White House was that Hillary Clinton, our Secretary of State, was heading to Haiti to “mediate the political crisis.” That’s
right, Haiti.

Meanwhile, the only information available to Americans comes from talking
heads and the few journalists not hung-over from Saturday’s rollicking good time
at the White House. The only “official” information so far from the White House
was Joe Biden’s statement on Day 3 of the protests. Joe said that President
Hosni Mubarak should not step down. He then proceeded to downplay the protests
spreading across the Mid East as generally unconnected.

The world is left wondering what position America, the world’s former
superpower, will take. The only stance our administration has taken to date is a
generic plea for an end to the violence and the oft-repeated call for human
rights. Meanwhile, the world teeters on the brink as a global crisis with
profound geopolitical implications for the U.S. continues to unfold.

Obama’s 3 am moment has come. And gone. Obama was noticeably AWOL. America
is now officially bereft of leadership, at least until the latest polls come
in.

Under Obama’s leadership, the US has voluntarily ceded its authority
as the world’s super power. After all, according to Obama, all countries and
cultures are equal. America’s voice should be but one of many. This is now
becoming a reality. Egypt continues to burn. And Obama parties and Twitters by
proxy. Welcome to the new world order.